Tigers took unorthodox route to building the best rotation in baseball

Monday

Oct 14, 2013 at 6:52 PM

DETROIT -- Their late-inning heroics on Sunday got the Red Sox back into this American League Championship Series, but it also obscured a disconcerting fact. Through two games, Boston has been absolutely dominated by Detroit's starting pitchers.

By TIM BRITTON

DETROIT -- Their late-inning heroics on Sunday got the Red Sox back into this American League Championship Series, but it also obscured a disconcerting fact. Through two games, Boston has been absolutely dominated by Detroit's starting pitchers.

Anibal Sanchez and Max Scherzer have combined to allow one run on two hits in 13 innings while striking out an astonishing 25 Red Sox. The task does not get any easier for Boston in Detroit, with Justin Verlander in Game Three and Doug Fister in Game Four.

Had David Ortiz not come through in Sunday's eighth inning, the narrative emerging from the weekend at Fenway Park would have been clear: In an otherwise even matchup, the Tigers had displayed the difference between good starting pitching and great starting pitching.

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Even with the series tied, it's worth considering how Detroit has built the best rotation in the majors. It's been an unorthodox path navigated by general manager Dave Dombrowski, and it's the main reason the Tigers are the defending AL champs and in the ALCS for the third consecutive season.

The Tigers' rotation obviously revolves around Justin Verlander, the homegrown No. 2 pick who's matured into the AL's best pitcher over the past three seasons. Timing was key in the drafting and retention of Verlander. He was the reward for Detroit's horrendous 119-loss season in 2003, and he developed into an ace right as the Tigers experienced more on-field success and an increase in payroll.

When Verlander was drafted, Detroit had a $47 million payroll -- 23rd in the league. This season, with Verlander kicking off a seven-year, $180 million extension, the Tigers' payroll is fifth in baseball at $149 million.

But one pitcher, no matter how talented, can't make a team a contender; Felix Hernandez can mournfully attest to that. The Tigers have managed to build a relatively young and remarkably talented pitching staff around Verlander without developing a second frontline starter from within.

They have done it by making a trio of excellent trades that have turned assets -- both established and not -- into long-term starters.

The first complementary piece was Scherzer. After the Tigers lost a one-game playoff in 2009 to the Twins to miss the postseason, Dombrowski boldly traded two of his prime assets to get younger. In a three-team deal, Detroit sent Curtis Granderson to New York (receiving Austin Jackson back) and Edwin Jackson to Arizona (in return for Scherzer).

Edwin Jackson had been acquired the previous offseason from Tampa Bay for Matt Joyce, and he paid dividends with a solid year in Detroit. While only a year younger than Jackson, Scherzer had two fewer years of service time and, in most eyes, a higher ceiling. Although Jackson has continued a strong career in several other stops, Scherzer is almost certain to win this year's AL Cy Young. He has another year of arbitration eligibility before becoming a free agent.

In late July 2011, the Tigers held a tiny lead in the AL Central over Cleveland, and they had been outscored on the season. Phil Coke and Brad Penny constituted 40 percent of the starting rotation. While the Indians were working out a major deal for Ubaldo Jimenez -- and teams like the Red Sox were focused on Erik Bedard, Rich Harden and Hiroki Kuroda -- the Tigers swung a deal with Seattle for Fister. Detroit gave up a pair of promising and proximate prospects in Charlie Furbush and Casper Wells.

Fister, who came with the reputation of being a product of Safeco Field, pitched to a 1.89 ERA down the stretch of the season. He started the deciding Game Five of the Division Series, winning at Yankee Stadium.

Over the last two-plus seasons, Fister has been one of the best bargains in baseball. He's still arbitration-eligible the next two years, and he's posted a 3.29 ERA as a Tiger.

The final piece of Detroit's rotation quartet was adding Sanchez last year. It was a riskier move, given that the right-hander was a free agent at the end of the season and cost well-regarded prospect Jacob Turner. Sanchez, though, became a key part of the Tigers' run to the World Series last season, allowing four earned runs in 20 1/3 postseason innings.

Detroit's ability to re-sign Sanchez extended the trade's benefits (and was no doubt made possible by the inexpensive salaries of Scherzer and Fister, who are making less combined this season than Ryan Dempster). Sanchez led the AL in ERA this season.

As an organization, the Red Sox are in their healthiest spot in years, especially in regards to starting pitching. Boston will enter the offseason with six seasoned starters and multiple prospects knocking on the door. The easiest way to build a strong starting pitching staff is from within. But sometimes that means translating those pieces into better ones from outside the organization -- converting Turner into Sanchez, for instance.

Detroit's willingness to do just that helped consolidate its stranglehold on the AL Central and built the best rotation in the league. If Boston makes the most of its assets, the Red Sox are in position to challenge the Tigers this week and beyond.